Those of you who follow Method to Madness on Facebook should have already have seen this footage that I have uploaded to associate with this discussion, but I'm going to break it down and go over the demo in detail from my own experiences in comparison to the original release of Ninja Gaiden 3.
Gameplay:
Decapitation and dismemberment from previous titles return in full force here. Many gameplay elements from Ninja Gaiden 2 were borrowed and implemented in Razor's Edge, while some elements from the original Ninja Gaiden 3 were discarded or completely remade, such as Steel on Bone being a grab counter chain and no longer requiring button spam, and the Kunai Climbing being much faster and easier to perform. Many other gameplay mechanics from Ninja Gaiden II were implemented in Razor's Edge.Additional features include new exclusive weapons such as the Lunar Staff, Kusarigama and Dual Katanas, improved AI, and new enemy types, new battle areas and alternate costumes. The "Karma Counter" from previous games was bought back, now with enhanced features and bonuses. An upgrade menu will be implemented, and will allow players to spend their Karma points to enhance their weapons, Ninpo spells, and character traits, such as health bar length and special moves.
The game features online cooperative gameplay mode, with new playable characters, such as the female ninja Ayane, was revealed in a preview of the game at the Nintendo of America Wii U press conference in New York. She has her own set of moves, similar to her Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 iteration, with additional cutscenes produced for her added role. A new Chapter Challenge mode allows the player to control Ayane, as well additional DLC characters, Kasumi and Momiji, in any part of the game.
Hands-On Gameplay:
Ryu Hayabusa - Day 2 Gameplay
First thing that players who have played the first version of Ninja Gaiden 3 will notice is that Ryu can switch weapons once again. Thank god that this feature is back from Ninja Gaiden 2. NG3 was so damn stale in its original iteration with just the mere Dragon Sword and Bow as your only means of offensive weaponry.
Secondly, the difficulty has spiked considerably from the original. In terms of difficulty, I rank Ninja Gaiden II the hardest of the series with the original being a close second place. Ninja Gaiden 3 was literally a cakewalk in comparison of the first two installments of this series. Tecmo sought to change that completely here. I say the difficulty is back up to Ninja Gaiden II standards as enemies' suicide and desperation attacks will easily decimate your life bar.
The health regeneration system is a bit like Ninja Gaiden II's mixed with the one from the original version of NG3, whereas you are punished for continuing/retrying from a checkpoint. As a result, your health bar is cut in half from this "second chance" - you will see first hand in the Ayane video (see below). If you clear an area without dying then the game fully restores your health at the start of the next checkpoint. It's pretty fair for the most part as it encourages players NOT to fail, but it's pretty hard not to do during your first few attempts at this demo.
The health regeneration system is a bit like Ninja Gaiden II's mixed with the one from the original version of NG3, whereas you are punished for continuing/retrying from a checkpoint. As a result, your health bar is cut in half from this "second chance" - you will see first hand in the Ayane video (see below). If you clear an area without dying then the game fully restores your health at the start of the next checkpoint. It's pretty fair for the most part as it encourages players NOT to fail, but it's pretty hard not to do during your first few attempts at this demo.
At 1:02 in, you will notice one of the new techniques that can be purchased in the demo, allowing Ryu to fire his bow while jumping at the cost of spending a bit of his Ninpo meter. I honestly think that is worth the meter consumption as you are a sitting duck trying to aim the bow on the ground in a stationary position, especially given the high speed nature of this game.
Keep in mind that all upgrades and techniques acquired in the demo WILL carry over into the full retail release if you decide to purchase it.
In terms of gameplay, Tecmo hasn't bothered to fix this series' VERY annoying camera. Ryu still has the "slide" technique that was originally introduced in NG3. When executed properly, it lowers enemies' defenses long enough to mount an offensive. It's a decent means of mobility around a battlefield, but just don't rely on it too much. It's not invulnerable in the least and it's just a bad habit I have from the original NG3 from doing it so much.
Veteran Ninja Gaiden players will be sad to know that the Flying Swallow technique has been nerfed considerably in this outing. It is no longer your main means of crowd control as most enemies with block it consistently. I suggest using it mainly to deal with soldiers armed with firearms as they don't have the ability to block or parry it like the bladed soldiers do.
At 4:49, you see the Kunai Climb technique. In the original NG3 this gameplay element was glitched to hell and was VERY unresponsive, resulting in a lot of frustrating deaths later in the campaign's narrative. Tecmo has listened to players' gripes and fixed this mechanic. I still find it to be a stupid addition, but to each his or her own I guess.
The end of this stage concludes with a battle against the infamous French alchemists that plague this game's narrative. This new enemy type is more annoying than challenging as they are constantly moving around to avoid your attacks. The Flying Swallow technique works wonders to knock off their mystical protection barriers, allowing you to assault them with more powerful combo strings. I suggest the hit and run approach as their grapple attacks can siphon both your health and Ninpo meters. If you have a chance, distance yourself and charge up your Ultimate Techniques (hold down the Heavy Attack button; signaled by the glowing aura around Ryu/Ayane's bodies and vibration from your controller - 1st vibration is a level one charge, 2nd vibration is a level two charge, but anything after that is maximum output for this attack) and release it as soon as they get close. These guys really wouldn't know what hit them after that. You can forget about Ninpo magic too, unless you are low on health.
It's hard to keep track of their positions with the horrid camera angles in this confined area. The camera is a deadlier adversary than these guys combined if you ask me.
Ayane - Day 2 (Ayane) Gameplay
Compared to Ryu Hayabusa, Ayane is MUCH faster than he is, but her strikes are weaker as a result.
Instead of the bow, Ayane is armed with her trusty arsenal of kunai darts to deal with long-range opponents. She has the same slide technique (which is much more useful than Ryu Hayabusa's due to her superior speed and agility) and shares a few other techniques with Ryu Hayabusa with a few subtle differences. For example, her Flying Swallow technique ends with an Izuma Drop upon contact to an opponent. Also note that Ayane has a better time dealing with crowd control than Ryu does without having switch to alternate weapons in combat.
One thing I miss that they have taken out in this game from Ninja Gaiden II is the glowing essence that was left behind from your enemies. I guess it's absence is that you are dealing with primarily all human opponents in this game rather than the fiends and demons of the last two games, but still that mechanic was so helpful in charging and triggering Ultimate and Obliteration Techniques faster. Given Ayane's speed, I would assume that she would be severely overpowered if she had that ability in this game.
Around the 0:55 mark, you should notice me trigger the Bloody Rage technique. It's a new mechanic introduced in NG3 where as you wipe out every enemy surrounding you. It builds up as a result of the "curse" bestowed onto Ryu Hayabusa as part of the game's narrative, as your sword hungers for the blood of your enemies. I guess Ayane has found her own means to channel this bloodlust as well.
At the 1:17 mark, you can see the Steel on Bone technique. Like the Bloody Rage mechanic, it's a sort of counter to some of the enemies desperation attacks (visibly cued by the black aura surrounding them as they strike you). In the original version of NG3, you had to mash the attack buttons to keep it going consecutively as it rips through your opponents to shreds once it connects.
At the 1:37 mark, that is a telegraphed stealth kill sequence. The button prompts don't show up because I hit them so fast that the game didn't even had a chance to register them onscreen since I have done this at least a million times in the original NG3. I still feel like it was a stupid idea to tack on a stealth kill mechanic when you are primarily fighting these guys in the open anyway.
At the 4:23 mark, I use Ayane's Ninpo magic to deal with the crowd for I could easily take out the snipers on the ledges. This is my only compliant about playing as her in this version, as her Ninpo magic is borderline useless. I hope the full retail version has more techniques that she can use to accommodate for that weakness.
At the 4:57 mark, you can hear the enemy that I dismembered a few limbs from shout, "I'm not done yet!" Keep that in the back of your head to finish those enemies who utter those words immediately as they are prone to kamikaze attacks that will take off anything from 40-60% off of your health bar.
Around the 6:00 mark, I did the Steel on Bone technique again, but I didn't mash (enough apparently...) to follow through with the attack. A few seconds later you can see one of those kamikaze attacks rendered on Ayane.
Much like Ryu Hayabusa's level, Ayane's ends with a stand-off against the trio of French alchemists. These guys were the most annoying new enemies that were introduced in NG3 and it's even more frustrating here. Ayane has a harder time against these guys than Ryu as she can't rely on the Flying Swallow technique to break their powered-up aura state. Holy fuck at the 7:07 mark - take note of how much damage those Hadokens do from these guys!
So yeah, I'm stuck on this part of the demo for a while as I have NO clear idea on how to take these guys down with Ayane, save for finding a window to charge up for Ultimate Techniques before they get close. Keep note of how short my lifebar is in each retry attempt. It doesn't help that one hit from these guys does at least 60% health off.
At the 14:06 mark, that's when I really got pissed off at this boss fight as this was getting ridiculous. These guys dodge and evade EVERYTHING you throw at them and do insane amounts of damage to you with little effort at all. At this rate, I said screw it, I'm just going to spam the hell out of Ultimate Techniques. I know a cut it a bit close on the finish but I got the job done.
Instead of the bow, Ayane is armed with her trusty arsenal of kunai darts to deal with long-range opponents. She has the same slide technique (which is much more useful than Ryu Hayabusa's due to her superior speed and agility) and shares a few other techniques with Ryu Hayabusa with a few subtle differences. For example, her Flying Swallow technique ends with an Izuma Drop upon contact to an opponent. Also note that Ayane has a better time dealing with crowd control than Ryu does without having switch to alternate weapons in combat.
One thing I miss that they have taken out in this game from Ninja Gaiden II is the glowing essence that was left behind from your enemies. I guess it's absence is that you are dealing with primarily all human opponents in this game rather than the fiends and demons of the last two games, but still that mechanic was so helpful in charging and triggering Ultimate and Obliteration Techniques faster. Given Ayane's speed, I would assume that she would be severely overpowered if she had that ability in this game.
Around the 0:55 mark, you should notice me trigger the Bloody Rage technique. It's a new mechanic introduced in NG3 where as you wipe out every enemy surrounding you. It builds up as a result of the "curse" bestowed onto Ryu Hayabusa as part of the game's narrative, as your sword hungers for the blood of your enemies. I guess Ayane has found her own means to channel this bloodlust as well.
At the 1:17 mark, you can see the Steel on Bone technique. Like the Bloody Rage mechanic, it's a sort of counter to some of the enemies desperation attacks (visibly cued by the black aura surrounding them as they strike you). In the original version of NG3, you had to mash the attack buttons to keep it going consecutively as it rips through your opponents to shreds once it connects.
At the 1:37 mark, that is a telegraphed stealth kill sequence. The button prompts don't show up because I hit them so fast that the game didn't even had a chance to register them onscreen since I have done this at least a million times in the original NG3. I still feel like it was a stupid idea to tack on a stealth kill mechanic when you are primarily fighting these guys in the open anyway.
At the 4:23 mark, I use Ayane's Ninpo magic to deal with the crowd for I could easily take out the snipers on the ledges. This is my only compliant about playing as her in this version, as her Ninpo magic is borderline useless. I hope the full retail version has more techniques that she can use to accommodate for that weakness.
At the 4:57 mark, you can hear the enemy that I dismembered a few limbs from shout, "I'm not done yet!" Keep that in the back of your head to finish those enemies who utter those words immediately as they are prone to kamikaze attacks that will take off anything from 40-60% off of your health bar.
Around the 6:00 mark, I did the Steel on Bone technique again, but I didn't mash (enough apparently...) to follow through with the attack. A few seconds later you can see one of those kamikaze attacks rendered on Ayane.
Much like Ryu Hayabusa's level, Ayane's ends with a stand-off against the trio of French alchemists. These guys were the most annoying new enemies that were introduced in NG3 and it's even more frustrating here. Ayane has a harder time against these guys than Ryu as she can't rely on the Flying Swallow technique to break their powered-up aura state. Holy fuck at the 7:07 mark - take note of how much damage those Hadokens do from these guys!
So yeah, I'm stuck on this part of the demo for a while as I have NO clear idea on how to take these guys down with Ayane, save for finding a window to charge up for Ultimate Techniques before they get close. Keep note of how short my lifebar is in each retry attempt. It doesn't help that one hit from these guys does at least 60% health off.
At the 14:06 mark, that's when I really got pissed off at this boss fight as this was getting ridiculous. These guys dodge and evade EVERYTHING you throw at them and do insane amounts of damage to you with little effort at all. At this rate, I said screw it, I'm just going to spam the hell out of Ultimate Techniques. I know a cut it a bit close on the finish but I got the job done.
The Verdict:
This goes without saying - this demo is F'N hard, but as you upgrade Ryu Hayabusa and Ayane's techniques and weapons, it's a bit more easier. This game just requires a LOT more patience than other button-masher friendly over-the-top action games, such as God of War series or the recent DmC (Devil May Cry) reboot.
From what I have heard, Ninja Gaiden 3: Razer's Edge is retailing at the price of $49.99. Honestly, I still would not pay that much for this game. NG3's narrative is horrible for the most part - read my review if you want the full breakdown. I suggest waiting for this to hit the bargain bin as new playable characters and ability to swap weapons again for Ryu isn't enough to justify a lot of this game's problems at the core - namely this god-awful camera. And here I thought we left bad camera angles back in PS2-era gaming.
If you are new to the series, then I definitely suggest giving this demo a shot and seeing if it's your cup of tea or not. If you like what you experienced here, then I suggest investing in the previous two Ninja Gaiden games before picking this up.
From what I have heard, Ninja Gaiden 3: Razer's Edge is retailing at the price of $49.99. Honestly, I still would not pay that much for this game. NG3's narrative is horrible for the most part - read my review if you want the full breakdown. I suggest waiting for this to hit the bargain bin as new playable characters and ability to swap weapons again for Ryu isn't enough to justify a lot of this game's problems at the core - namely this god-awful camera. And here I thought we left bad camera angles back in PS2-era gaming.
If you are new to the series, then I definitely suggest giving this demo a shot and seeing if it's your cup of tea or not. If you like what you experienced here, then I suggest investing in the previous two Ninja Gaiden games before picking this up.
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